House by the sea
by Princess Lucy
Summary: What mysteries and horror does the Pevensies new house hold rated for violence nothing else
1. Chapter 1 :New House

**Disclaimer: What you have to ask. I only own various ghosts and school kids and Mr.and Mrs.Mcormack**

**Thanks to Opera Dove for her help,you rock**

The mansion was perched precariously near the edge of the cliff which overlooked the ocean.

"What a lovely house" Helen Pevensie gushed,she turned back to smile at her four children

"I'm sure you four will have such adventures here" .They didn't smile back instead stared straigh ahead at the house that was to be their new home.

They climbed out of the car and grabbed their suitcases.

"I highly doubt that " Edmund muttered,Lucy stepped closer to Peter

"Scared,Lu" he asked

"A bit" the little girl admitted .Peter squeezed her hand

They followed their mother into the house. It took a while to get adjusted to the house the oak walls made it look darker.

"You are the Pevensies,I presume" a voice in the shadows said ,the speaker came forward .It was a lady with grey hair pulled in a tight bun."You are late" she said

"Yes,well we got lost" Helen said "These are my children" she started to introduce them,but was interrupted

"I'm not fond of children neither is my husband" the lady said coldly,"I'm Mrs.Mcormick,I am was your great uncle's housekeeper,my husband is both caretaker and butler"

She started toward the stairs and they followed her,"You're probably wondering why we stayed on even after your Uncles untimely passing" Mrs.Mcormack said.She didn't wait for an answer

"We have no family just each other,this could be your eldest daughter's room" she said stopping at a door and pushing it open.

Susan peered in.The room was done in a mauve colour ,eggshell curtains fluttered in the breeze.On the far wall was a desk and chair. a bed ,dresser and wardrobe completed the room it was a big room too.Susan went in and shut the door

"This house is riddled with tragedy and sorrow" Mrs.Mcormack continued

"Like what" Peter asked

Mrs.Mcormack glared at him and he shivered slightly

"Deaths,murders and suicides " she said "This is your room" she said opening a door his room looked like Susan's except a different colour ,for some reason he felt chilled when he stepped into the room. Placing his suitcase on the bed . He went to the window and looked down,he could see the ocean in the distance. This room had a creepy feeling and he didn't want to stay in it longer than he had to.Taking a deep breath he turned back to his unpacking.

**later**

"Well,do you like the house" Mum asked as she served the soup

"I do" Lucy said "We could play hide and seek"

"It's like the house in **Wuthering Heights" ** Susan sighed dreamily intending to curl up after lunch with aforementioned novel.

"I think there's a lot of mystery in this house"Edmund said dark eyes sparkling he loved mysteries and read every Sherlock Holmes novel he could get his hands on.

Only Peter was silent,he was dreading the coming night.for some reason his room seemed to hold the most mystery and horror. He couldn't say why either,but it he could feel it.

"It's nice" was all he said

**That night.**

_The Woman was silent as she crept up to the bed,the room was dark.But there was enough moonlight to illimunate the silvery butcher knife.Her husband lay sleeping peacefully . The woman raised the knife and bought it down over and over and over blood spattered everywhere on the walls,the sheets,the floor.The woman dropped the knife and glided toward the window,leaving a trail of blood in her wake,the hem of her dressing gown was covered in blood. Opening the window ,she stepped out onto the ledge and turned around so she was facing the room and her husband_

_"I'm sorry,mon cheri" she said before letting herself fall _

Peter woke up with a gasp and shudder

**Susan's room**

Susan was in the middle of a nice dream ,when she heard the laughter of a children.Thinking it was Lucy she sat up prepared to scold her little sister. Instead of Lucy though there were two little girls playing they were dressed in old fashioned dresses; pinafores and bows in their hair.

They looked up at Susan and giggled before turning back to their game. One of the girls stood up cradling a doll ,she went to Susan and held the doll out.

Susan reached out and pulled back when the girls and doll burst into flames ,leaving only ashes in their wake. Susan screamed .

**Edmund's room**

The sound of crying woke Edmund up.it was coming from outside. Curious he sat up and went to the window and looked out. There was no one there.But just as he was about to turn away and go back to bed he heard it again. Going back to the window ,he saw a lady dressed in white holding a bouquet of flowers.She walked straight into the ocean . Edmund wasn't frightened only curious

**Lucy's room**

Lucy sat up when she heard the sound of someone talking.Dismissing it she went back to sleep. She never saw the ragged looking young man in the corner.Imprisoned by his father for a crime he did not commit;.he had died in that corner a young man only twenty two.

**A/N it'sa bit short,I know and yes Lucy will meet her ghostly companion,he's not scary only sad.Peter's ghost is frightening.Susan's is half and half and Edmund's is heartbroken**


	2. Chapter 2:The Town

**Four reviews! and it was only put up last night.Thanks to all who reviewed.As for my punctuation,I know that's off so if anyones willing to beta I'll be happy as long as they can get to me within a week or so,if not okay.**

**Chapter 2**

"It's such a nice day today" Mum said at breakfast,"There's some bikes in the shed .You could go into town".

"Why" Edmund asked "What's in town"

"Shops,school,other stuff,just go .It'll be much more interesting than sitting around here all day" Mum said.

So that's what they did. Soon as breakfast was over they went around to the shed and found four usable bikes.

"Lucky break I suppose" Susan said as they started down the path .They turned around and stared at the house it did look haunted.

"Where shall we go" Peter asked .

"Town" Susan said "I want to see if they have a library"

They rode into town.It wasn't very big .On one side was a wharf .Fishermen hauled in the mornings catch and barely glanced up as the children rode past. On the other side were houses packed closely together.

Soon the houses gave way to small shops. The salty sea air had caused the paint to start to peel off some of the buildings..In the distance they could see their house looming on the hill like a king gazing down on his subjects.

There was a library,but it was so small it didn't open until Monday .

"Now what" Edmund asked .

"We could go see where the school is" Susan suggested.

"Might as well,I really don't want to go back home" Peter said .

The school was at the very end of the road a two story brick building with a playground in front.

"It's a nice looking school and look Lu they have swings" Susan said brightly.

"It doesn't matter how nice the school is were still the new kids " Edmund said .

"Don't be like that,Eddy" Susan pleaded "We won't be new for long anyway" she said.

**Monday**

Monday morning they woke up to a grey overcast sky, a dense fog had rolled in from the sea and it just made the house seem even creepier. Mum drove them to school and enrolled them.

"Have a good day" she said kissing them goodbye .

The morning passed quickly and soon it was time for lunch. Students streamed out breaking into groups . Soon the air was filled with the shouts and laughter of children .

The four of them stood apart from the other children. They were used to it though it had been that way since Narnia . Though for some reason some of the kids kept staring at them and whispering .

"Why do they keep staring at us" Lucy asked slipping her hand into Peter's "It's awfully rude of them."

Several of the children broke away from the group and came over to them.

One boy a pale red haired boy spoke up ," You're house is haunted,people die in that house and go crazy."

"Your uncle was crazy" they teased

"I think you're lying" Susan said coolly

"No,were not he lived alone in that house just him and his butler and the butlers wife . Then one day he went mad and killed himself. People say if you listen closely you could hear the man's last scream as he jumped to his death his body splattered on the rocks below" the boy said .

"Shut up" Peter snapped ,putting an arm around Lucy's shoulder.

Susan glared at the kids,but Edmund looked intrigued here was a mystery waiting to be solved .

**Later.**

"Do you believe those kids" Susan asked they were seated at a small table in the back of the library,"Honestly the stories they come up with" she was flipping through a old newspaper reading the articles . She turned the page to a picture of aman and woman on their wedding day,Peter looked up and his heart stopped for a minute .The woman was the one in his nightmare.

"I've seen her" he said pointing to the woman

"Have you ?" Edmund asked."Where,a film ?"

"No,a dream ,nightmare really. She killed her husband ,stabbed him while he was sleeping" he said .

"Was she arrested" Susan asked

"No,she killed herself .She went to the window ,climbed up on the sill and let herself fall backwards,but she said something before she died." Peter recalled .

"What'd she say" Edmund asked

"She said ,"'I'm sorry,mon cheri"' that's it just I'm sorry" Peter said .

"That's odd" Susan said "She killed him ,yet she was sorry "

"Or maybe that house does make people go crazy" Edmund said

"That's stupid,Ed,houses don't make people go crazy" Susan scoffed.

"Maybe they do, maybe they don't " Edmund shrugged .


	3. Chapter 3: Ghosts and Nightmares

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**Disclaimer : Hmm, well I only own the townspeople and certain ghosts. Lucy meets her ghost in this chapter and the siblings look for answers. The Mcormacks creep about and are generally creepy**.

Lucy was not called valiant for nothing, but even she had her fears. She lay in bed, gazing up at the ceiling and trying to get to sleep. She heard someone talking and sat up. There was a man in the corner. He was pale and ghostly looking, clothes hanging on his thin frame. Lucy was more curious then scared for a minute.

"W-who are you? Are you a ghost?" She asked.

The man looked up, his eyes hollow, "You can see me?" He asked.

Lucy nodded. "Yes, quite plainly" She got out of bed. "Are you a evil ghost?"

"No, my names James Andrews." he replied.

"I'm Lucy Pevensie. What are you doing here in my room?" Lucy asked curiously.

James sighed sorrowfully. "I perished in this room. This used to be a prison in the early 1700's. I was imprisoned for a crime I didn't commit"

"Oh. That's awful " Lucy said sympathetically .

**Peter's room**

Peter was having a hard time keeping his eyes open. He didn't want to go to sleep - not if he was going to have the same nightmare he had been having the last few nights.

_Blood dripping from the sheets pooling onto the floor. Steady._

_Drip._

_Drip._

_Drip. _

_Drip._

_A bloodcurdling scream echoing through the air swirling through the air._

Peter bolted upright, his heart pounding. He glanced out the window. There was a full moon. The window was slightly open and the curtains fluttered in the breeze. He shivered - either from cold and fear he couldn't say. Laying back down, he pulled the covers up over his head.

**Next morning**

"We should go to the library after school." Edmund said at breakfast.

Susan choked on her orange juice. "You want to go to the library?" She gasped, tears streaming down her face. She looked tired there were circles under her eyes.

"Yes" Edmund replied, reaching for a piece of toast

"What's wrong with Peter?" Lucy asked, motioning to their older brother who was practically asleep in his oatmeal.

"You look like death warmed over." Edmund commented dryly.

Peter looked up, "Huh?" He asked

Edmund waved his hand. "Never mind," he said.

Mum came into the kitchen. "If you four don't hurry you'll be late." She looked at Peter and Susan. "Are you two all right? You look peaky."

"We're fine, Mum." Susan forced a smile.

Mum looked at Peter. "Peter?"

"I'm fine just tired." He mumbled, fighting back a yawn.

**Later that day**

"No one wants to come over." Lucy said mournfully as they rode to the library. "I've asked and asked."

"It's not us. It's the house." Edmund said.

"Ed, I am telling you houses don't make people go crazy." Susan groaned .

"Maybe, maybe not, but there's a mystery surrounding that house " Edmund stated.

They dropped their bikes in front of the library and went inside.

The librarian looked up as they came over. "May I help you?" She asked, before her eyes widened in recognition and fear "I-I'm s-sorry were c-closed. You children should leave." She said, rushing around the desk and ushering them out the door. She shut the door and locked it.

"What was that about?" Susan stared.

They didn't know, nor could they say.


	4. Chapter 4: Attic Findings

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**Disclaimer : I own everyone and everything**

**(evil laugh) Just kidding I only own the ghosts , Mcormacks and the townsfolks**.

**Chapter 4**

"How long must we wait?" Mrs. Mcormack moaned, her eyes sparkling with greed.

"Easy, my pet. We must wait for a month and a half. No one survives longer than that. Then the house shall be ours!" Mr. Mcormack said, lighting his pipe and leaning back in his chair.

"I'm tired of waiting! That's all your grandparents ever did was wait for that house to become theirs!" Mrs. Mcormack fumed. "We've been waiting for over three hundred years! That house should be mine -ours, I mean"

"As long as we are near the house, the curse my great-great-great-great-grandfather placed upon the house cannot be lifted." Mr. Mcormack reminded her.

"What if they figure it out?" Mrs. Mcormack asked worriedly.

"No one ever has. The family is cursed. Besides, what can four children and one woman figure out?" He asked confidently.

"The two eldest have nightmares." Mrs. Mcormack revealed.

"What are dreams, but images of ones subconscious? They will never know who was behind the many deaths in that house." Mr. Mcormack replied.

"The younger boy is determined to figure out the mystery of the house." She continued.

" A child's past time. He will get bored and move on to other things." Mr.Mcormack replied with a casual toss of his hand.

**Mansion**

A hard rain had started falling the night before and it was still pouring when they woke up. Mum had go out for the day. She left them with a warning not to go into the attic. (Actually that wasn't Mum's rule, but Mrs. Mcormack's). After breakfast they gathered in the parlor.

"I have a sense of déjà vu." Edmund said.

"I wonder what's in the attic." Lucy murmured, staring up at the ceiling. She jumped up, "We should explore it!"

"Are you mad? Mum said not go up there." Susan said .

"Oh, please! I'm sure it isn't dangerous!" Lucy pleaded. She shook Peter's arm. "Couldn't we? I'm awfully bored."

"I don't think that's a good idea, Lu." Peter shook his head.

But Lucy was insistent. She pleaded and begged until finally they gave in, only to get her to be silent.

**Attic**

The attic seemed to stretch for miles on end. It was very cluttered. Lucy walked toward a wardrobe and opened it.

"It won't be there, Lu." Edmund said softly.

"I know." Lucy said, her shoulders drooping slightly. She perked up when she spotted a pink dress.

"Gosh, these dresses are gorgeous!" Susan breathed, holding a cream colored dress with lace up against her body. She examined herself in the dusty full length mirror.

Peter was silent as he looked around the attic

"I wonder what these are." Edmund picked up a newspaper yellowed with age .

"What's what?" Susan asked, coming over and reading over his shoulder ."Old newspapers" She shrugged.

"Really?" Peter asked, looking interested. He walked over and gingerly took them from Edmund. Carefully as not to rip them he laid them out on one of the trunks and the four of them started to read them.

"I'm noticing a pattern here." Edmund said after awhile .

"Same here." Susan and Peter nodded.

"Everyone who lived here has died after living in the house for a month and a half. Either they kill themselves or they're violently killed." Peter said, before he started pacing.

Edmund jumped up, and ran downstairs.

"Where'd he go?" Lucy wondered vaguely.

Edmund came back with the family Bible. In the front was the family tree going back generations.

"Look at that, then look at the names in the newspaper." he said.

"That's impossible." Susan said, sounding frightened.

"Don't you see? It's this house! There's something wrong with it. Why is it that none of our ancestors can survive in this house?" Edmund asked .

"Why'd Mum want to move back here anyway? Didn't she know what might happen?" Susan wondered.

"No." Peter answered coming over. "I don't think Mum ever lived here. I mean this place it's been in the family for years, but there's a huge gap where nothing happens. Then look - a month and a half after Uncle Morris moves in, he dies."

"What are you saying?" Susan demanded, "You're frightening Lucy!" She put an arm around the younger girl's shoulder.

"I think Edmund might be right about this house." Peter said quietly. "This house is cursed"


	5. Chapter 5: Horrible Revalation

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**Disclaimer: You know the drill**

"Cursed?" Susan asked, her mouth dropping open. "What do you mean cursed?"

"Well, what other explanation can there be?" Peter asked.

Susan stood up brushing the dust off her skirt, "I can't believe this house is cursed. It's logically impossible .What caused it?"

Edmund looked up. "Not what. Who? People place curses on places or other people."

"Why?" Lucy asked.

"Revenge." Peter stated .

"Hey. What's this?" Susan came over holding a small leather bound book.

Peter took it from her. "Looks like a diary." he said opening it. The writing was tiny and precise. The first fifty pages were boring, but it was the last one that caught their attention.

_**The Master has lied to me. I have been his faithful servant for fifteen years. He promised to put me in his will. He shall pay! His family shall pay! A curse a thousand times shall rest upon the descendants who inhabit this house. Until my descendants get what is rightfully theirs.**_

_**HRM.**_

There was complete silence. Then Susan broke it. "I think I'm starting to understand." Her voice shook.

"Who's HRM?" Lucy asked.

"The owner of this diary the person behind the curse." Edmund answered.

"I don't understand. If this house is cursed, why do people keep moving in?" Lucy asked.

"They don't know it's cursed." Edmund shrugged.

"But the deaths?" Lucy's voice trailed off.

"I don't think we should have ever moved in here after Uncle Morris died." Peter said, fear in his voice.

"Peter." Susan's voice was strained and frightened. "Why would you say that?"

"Because whoever placed this curse wants this house and they'll stop at nothing to get it." he answered.

"But HRM is dead! He died over one hundred years ago." Susan said.

"HRM ? What does that M stand for I wonder." Edmund muttered. Then he knew

"Mcormack!" he shouted.

"Oh, it couldn't be!" Susan shook her head.

"Why not? It makes sense. Mrs. Mcormack didn't seem too happy about us moving in." Edmund pointed out.

"She's creepy." Lucy piped up.

"Granted, they're both creepy, but still that's no reason to suspect them." Susan frowned. "Peter, what do you think"

"I don't know, but they could be." Peter said "Or they might not be, but we'll need proof of some sort. If they are the descendants of HRM, then we're in danger."


	6. Chapter 6: Curse Awakened

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Susan was standing in the bathroom brushing her teeth, when suddenly the door slammed shut. Something grabbed her head. She couldn't move and without warning her face was slammed into the mirror over and over. She screamed as the mirror cracked and blood dripped from various cuts. Her head was pulled back, then slammed down onto the porcelain sink. She sank to the floor. She never heard the lock click and the door open a fraction of inch.

Meanwhile upstairs, Peter was laying on his bed trying to read. He couldn't concentrate. His stomach had been hurting all day. Suddenly the pain increased until it was like someone was stabbing him with a knife. He doubled up, gasping the pain increased ten fold. He started coughing. Blood poured from his mouth and his nose until he fell to the ground choking as the blood kept coming up out of his mouth, staining the carpet and his shirt.

**Guest house**

Mrs. Mcormack smiled at her husband a smile full of evil. "The curse has awakened. Soon the house will be ours"

Mr. Mcormack nodded." That is the best news I have heard all day.".

**Mansion**

Lucy burst into Peter's room, waving a shell over her head. She was quite proud of her find a multicolored shell that danced in the sunlight.

"Peter! Peter! Look what I found on the beach! It was just laying there and..." Lucy's voice trailed off and she screamed long and hard. Her hands flew up to her eyes, the shell dropping to the floor.

She never noticed.

All she could see was the blood - so much blood. On the carpet, on Peter's shirt and coming from his mouth and nose.

Lucy willed her feet to move and she ran out. "Ed! Edmund!" She cried, tears streaking down her face. She skidded to a stop. Edmund was kneeling on the bathroom floor. He stood up.

"Lucy go away" He said, trying to block her view of whatever he had been kneeling next to. Lucy peeked around him and for the second in two minutes she screamed. This was worse than Peter. Susan's face was covered in blood. Her whole face and the mirror was shattered. The sink had blood on it.

Edmund wished Lucy hadn't seen Susan. Actually he wished he hadn't seen Susan. He had to keep fighting the urge to be sick. Lucy was screaming, but it was a silent scream. No noise. Her hands were pressed to the side of her head and she was standing there in the middle of the corridor, her mouth open and her eyes scrunched up. He had heard her screaming earlier and he wondered where Peter was. He looked at Lucy. She had stopped screaming, but she was still crying silent tears streaming down her face, her thumb jammed in her mouth.

"Lu, where's Peter?" he asked softly.

Lucy shook her head unable to speak. She pointed in the direction of his room.

Edmund whirled around and ran down the hall toward Peter's room afraid of what he'd find.

**A few hours later.**

Edmund sat next to Lucy on her bed. Mum had called the ambulance and Peter and Susan were rushed to the hospital which was six miles away. Mum didn't want Lucy exposed anymore than she had been. Lucy wasn't doing anything at all. She just lay on her bed, her eyes unfocused with one arm wrapped around an old doll of hers. Her thumb was still in her mouth and all her bubbliness had been zapped away. Edmund was worried and frightened for his sweet little sister. This house was evil. What had happened to Peter and Susan was not some unfortunate accident despite what the paramedics had assured Mum. Something unforeseen had caused their injuries. Something evil .


	7. Chapter 7 :Bad News

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**Disclaimer: I own - well you know what I own, okay?**

Five weeks. That's all the time they had. Five weeks to try and break a two hundred year curse and without Peter and Susan it wasn't going to be easy.

"What are we going to do?" Lucy asked, twisting her skirt in her fingers. "If they die.." her voice trailed off and she sniffed back a few tears.

Edmund put his arm around her. "They won't die." he said firmly. "Look, Lu. It's up to us now. We have to figure this curse out and find a way to break it."

"Maybe the library has books." Lucy suggested. 'They have a lot of useful information -at least that's what Su always says"

An hour later they were seated at a small table in the back of the library with every book on curses open in front of them. There were two people who ran the library who were mother and daughter. Since the daughter was working that day, they weren't shooed out when they arrived.

So far they found nothing to help them.

"Maybe, we're looking in the wrong place." Lucy piped up suddenly. She tapped Edmund's arm. "Ed, did you hear me? I said maybe we're looking in the wrong place."

Edmund raised his head. "Where should we look then?" He asked, his old voice creeping into his old sarcastic and bitter one from before Narnia.

"Out there." Lucy pointed toward the busy seaside village.

'That's outside, Lucy." Edmund said.

"I know." Lucy said standing up. "Maybe someone out there can tell us why this curse has stayed on so long and why no one tried to break it."

It turned out Lucy was right and someone did know why the curse had stayed on so long. Mrs. Anderson who was an old widow had been around for quite some time and she knew about the mansion.

"In fact," she said, "that's the only mansion in this village - at least the only one of that size."

"The curse. What do you know about it?" Edmund asked. "Why has no one tried to break it?"

Mrs. Anderson took a sip of tea and appraised the two of them. "What makes you think they haven't, boy? Aye, many have tried, but none have been successful. It's a powerful curse which first injures victims, then kills them a week later."

"WHAT!" Edmund and Lucy cried horror struck. "They die a week later? We thought the death just came. We didn't know that there were injuries."

"The victims never die by their injuries. Why are you so interested anyway?" Mrs. Anderson asked, sitting up.

"We live there and - our older brother and sister - something happened to them. We don't know what, but it wasn't accident. " Edmund replied.

Lucy nodded.

"What happened to them?" Mrs. Anderson asked .

"Our older sister's face was smashed in the mirror. There's only five us, and none of us were upstairs when it happened and she didn't do it herself. Our older brother started bleeding for no apparent reason. Now tell me those were accidents! People don't bleed for no apparent reason!" Edmund said.

"Is there a way to break the curse" Lucy asked. "I don't want them to die." Her voice trembled.

"Perhaps there is a way. Your house was a prison before and one of the inmates was wrongly accused of a crime he didn't commit just so he wouldn't marry the magistrates daughter. They both died brokenhearted."

"How does this help us break the curse?" Edmund asked, a bit frustrated.

"Patience, Lad! I'm getting to that part. They must be reunited in death for they could not be together in life." Widow Anderson answered.

"But how?" Lucy asked

"Find the object that Cordelia held close to her heart. The object James gave her, then find the object that James held close to his heart and put them together."

"And that will break the curse?" Edmund asked.

"No. Not exactly - but it will lift it a bit just so that your siblings won't die. In order to break the curse you must go to the one who placed the curse or the descendants of the one who placed the curse."

"Oh" they said standing up to go. This was going to be harder than they thought. They headed out.

"Children" Widow Anderson called out. They turned back. "Don't give up hope. Curses can be broken. Remember, just look at all the fairytales."


	8. Chapter 8 :Curse Undone

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**Disclaimer : I own only the Mcormacks and any OC's.**

**Author's note: This is now a mystery story, so stay with me okay?**

"What do you think she meant by an object they held close to their heart?" Lucy asked the next day. They were in the attic trying to figure out the riddle.

"It could be anything. " Edmund said. He had never realized just how big the attic was and how much stuff there was in it. He sighed. Even if they managed to figure out what they were looking for, there was no way they'd find it in the time they needed.

"Want to know what I think it is." Lucy asked, looking up her face flushed with excitement." A necklace. A broken necklace! Cause you hold a necklace close to your heart."

Edmund looked at Lucy. "You know, Lu. I think you're right." He smiled at her. "Come on. I'll search one half of the attic .You search the other half, okay?"

"Okay!" Lucy said.

They tore the attic apart.

"I think this is it!" Edmund said, holding up a bottle with a broken necklace in it.

"You found it!" Lucy squealed, happily hugging him.

"Don't celebrate yet, Lu. We still need to find the other half." Edmund reminded her.

"I know. But we're nearly there, right?" Lucy replied.

**The next day**

Lucy was playing on the beach. Mum was at the hospital and Edmund was inside.

Stooping down she picked up a few shells and dropped them in her pail. Something caught her eye - a dull green, thin chain light up by the sun. She caught hold of the end of it and pulled it out.

"Oh gosh! It's the necklace." she whispered. Indeed it was. Even though it was tarnished and the locket was broken, it was the necklace.

Lucy jumped up and ran toward the house, "Ed! Edmund! I found it! I found the other hal-" her voice trailed off as Mr. Mcormack appeared in front of her, his eyes glittering with greed and malice.

"Give me the locket, little girl." He held out his hand.

Lucy backed up a few steps her hand closing tightly over the locket. "No. I found it, and I need it."

"You don't know what you're saying. Give me the necklace if you know what's good for you." Mr. Mcormack warned.

Lucy looked around. There was only one way back to the house and that was up the cliff. Mr. Mcormack was still standing there his hand out.

Lucy crouched down and picked up a handful of sand to hurl into his face and took off running.

Mr. Mcormack let out a howl of outrage, hands over his eyes.

Lucy stuffed the locket in her pocket and started climbing the cliff. She could see Mr. Mcormack climbing up after her .

"Give me that necklace, you little brat!" he yelled, trying to grab her foot.

Lucy slipped a little bit. She scrabbled for a hand hold and foot hold. She kept climbing. Her palms were bloody and scraped, but she was determined to get to the top.

Mr. Mcormack was just as determined to get the necklace from Lucy. He knew exactly what would happen if the two necklaces were put together and he couldn't let that happen - not if he and his wife were to get the house. He had hoped with the older two in the hospital, the younger two would give up, but they didn't. He really hated kids they were too damn persistent.

He looked up. Good. They were nearing the top now so if he could grab the little girl and pull her down to kill her, everyone would think it was an accident. He reached out to grab her leg, but he was a minute too late and his fingers only brushed it before the lurch sent him sliding over the edge.

He dangled there, his hand slipping slowly. Lucy looked back to see Mr. Mcormack slipping and she bit her lip, torn between helping him or not .Lucy was a helpful person by nature and she hated seeing people hurt or dead. But this was different. He was trying to kill them.

She watched as he plummeted to his death, his body smashing on the rocks.

"Lu!" Edmund's face appeared over the edge of the cliff. He pulled her up and she sagged with relief in his arms.

"I-I-I f-found the necklace." She whispered, taking it out with trembling hands. The image of Mr. Mcormack's body was still in her mind and she pushed away from Edmund and staggered a few feet away before she vomited.

Edmund was by her side instantly rubbing her back.

"Oh, Ed! It was awful!" She shuddered. "He fell so far and his body . . ." She hid her face. .

"Lu, don't okay? It wasn't your fault." Edmund said. "Shall we see if the widow was right?" They held up both halves of the locket and put them together. Nothing happened for a moment before Lucy gasped

"Ed! Look!" She tugged his arm and they both stared as the necklace started glowing brightly. It suspended in mid air before falling to the sand.

Lucy rushed forward, but Emund pulled her back. "Don't touch it." He warned. They watched as the locket fizzled and slowly disappeared from sight.

Lucy looked at Edmund. "Do you think it worked?"

"Let's hope so." Edmund said, taking her hand as they headed back into the house


	9. Chapter 9:Not Really Dead

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**Woohoo! I'm back with a vengeance there's going to be some twists in this chapter.**

**Also I own OC's and that's it.**

"So he's dead?" Susan and Peter asked, looking at Lucy and Edmund.

"He fell off the cliff." Edmund replied. Lucy nodded in confirmation.

"Well ,I guess that's good. I mean we won't be bothered by them anymore." Susan said, standing up.

"_She's_ still alive." Edmund pointed out.

"I still don't see what's so special about this house that people have to die." Lucy shook her head.

"Maybe it is the house or something in the house in one of the rooms perhaps. I don't know." Peter replied.

"We could check the Mcormack's house and see if we can't find something that will tell us what we need to know." Susan suggested.

"I don't think so." Edmund said, squelching that idea.

"We have to know!" Susan persisted. "My face getting smashed in the mirror was no accident."

"We know that all right, but I'm just saying going into the house of the people who tried to kill you and your little sister might not be the smartest thing." Edmund said.

Lucy was looking through a photo album she had found up in the attic. She noticed something odd about two people. They looked like Mr. and Mrs. Mcormack. Exactly like them.

She showed the others. "I think it's them, but look at the dates! 1789. 1835. 1905." She said.

"That's impossible! Maybe it's a coincidencea" Susan said, not sounding confident or even sure of herself.

"I don't think it's a coincidence or a mistake! I think it is them. I think it's them in every picture." Peter said.

"But how? They'd be dead - they should be dead." Edmund said.

"They're ghosts?" Lucy squeaked.

"I don't think so. I don't think they ever died." Peter looked thoughtful and turned to Lucy. "Lu, did you actually see Mr. Mcormack's body after he fell"

Lucy thought a minute. "I-I didn't think to check. Why?"

"Pete, what are you saying?" Edmund asked.

"I have a bad feeling that Mr. Mcormack isn't dead." Peter said quietly.

"People die, Peter! It's not as if they live forever." Susan said firmly.

"Unless they sold their soul to the devil." Edmund said only half serious.

"You might be right." Peter said.

"Oh, Peter! That's ridiculous! No one would want to live forever. I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation." Susan insisted.

"Susan, may I remind you that you got your face smashed in a mirror by some unforeseen force? How can you still think there's a reasonable explanation?" Peter said.

"Well, if they did sell their soul in order to live forever, it must have come with a price." Edmund said.

"Sort of like a bargaining chip, but what would they have used?" The others wondered.

"It has to be in this house. Something hidden." Lucy guessed.

"We're running out of time!" Mrs. Mcormack hissed. "You said we'd have it by now!"

"How was I to know I'd fall of a fifty foot cliff, thanks to that little brat? We don't have much time." Mr. Mcormack snapped.

"We need to get that thing. No matter what it takes!" Mrs. Mcormack said.

**A/N: You all thought I killed off Mr. Mcormack ,surprise! Read and review please**


	10. Chapter 10:Posessed

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**Disclaimer: Come on if you don't know it, I ain't repeating it okay.**

The source of the Mcormack's power lay in a gold pendant. With the pendant they could force people to do things against their will, including commit murder or suicide. Which explained all the deaths over the years. However, without the pendant they were powerless. Mrs. Mcormack had foolishly dropped it after the death of the Pevensie's great-uncle where it had fallen through the cracks of the floorboards in the attic.

The children did not know about the pendant and, in fact, had walked over it several times the day they were up in the attic. It wasn't until they were exploring the house again, that Lucy caught a glimpse of something gold shining through the crack of the floorboards, where the sun hit it directly. She knelt down and managed to pry the thing up. Holding it in her fist, she felt slightly strange as if she had more power than she knew what to do with.

Her eyes took on a blank unfocused look and her breath quickened. Susan was the first to notice her.

"Lu, what's wrong?" She reached out to her sister.

"Don't touch me!" Lucy screamed, not sounding at all like her sweet self. In fact, she sounded animalistic with her eyes wild and she stood up tossing her hair and laughing uncontrollably.

Peter, Susan and Edmund watched as Lucy tore down the attic stairs.

By the time the three of them made it downstairs, the parlor was destroyed.

"Where is she?" Edmund asked.

They heard a crash from the ballroom and rushing in, they found Lucy holding a jeweled dagger. Where she had gotten it from, they didn't know.

Susan was about to rush forward when Peter stopped her.

"Don't go near her!" He ordered. There was something about her eyes that made Peter believe his sister was in there somewhere.

"You and Ed just go. I think I can talk to her. Just go, she isn't herself!" Peter urged.

Peter waited until they were safely out of the room before turned to Lucy.

Peter inched forward, not taking his eyes off Lucy's eyes. He had seen the pendant around her neck and knew this was causing the change in her.

"Get away from me!" Lucy screamed raising the knife. "I'll do it! I will! I will!"

"Lucy, look at me!" Peter commanded.

Lucy looked at him, then cocked her head and in a voice that sounded about four giggled and said, "Lucy's not here! I'll take a message. Wanna come out and play with me? They said, I'd get playmates. Lucy's my playmate. She does whatever I tell her to. Everyone does whatever I tell them to. I have a lot of playmates all ages!"

Peter stared at her. "What do you mean you have a lot of playmates?"

"Lucy" giggled again. "Do you wanna be my friend? We can have tea parties!"

"No!" Peter reached out and grabbed the pendant. "Lucy" screamed in rage and bit him, and he realized for some reason she was stronger than normal. Even so, Peter was stronger and he managed to pull the pendant off of her. He smashed it on the ground.

"Peter?" It was Lucy's voice, now sounding confused and lost.

Peter swept her in his arms, and Lucy started crying. "I'm sorry!" She sobbed over and over. "I didn't mean to!"

Suddenly the house started to shake. Peter pulled Lucy up and they started for the door, but it slammed shut.

All the windows that had been opened slammed shut.

"Hasn't anyone told you not to touch things that don't belong to you?" Mrs. Mcormack asked, appearing as if by magic.

Peter pushed Lucy behind him. Mrs. Mcormack laughed evilly and with a sweep of her hand threw Peter across the room. He hit the far wall and crumbled to the floor.

A scarf appeared and wrapped around Lucy's throat, lifting her up inch by inch. She gasped for air, clawing at the scarf, her eyes wild with fear.

Mrs.Mcormack threw her head back and laughed and laughed. "Shall I kill you now and have your brother watch the life drain from your poor little body?" she taunted.

On the other side of the door, Susan and Edmund were trying to get in, with no success.

"A secret passage!" Edmund cried, grabbing Susan's hand and pulling her toward the library.

"Why are we in here?" Susan asked, watching Edmund toss books out from the bookcase and onto the floor.

"In stories, there's usually a secret passage hidden in the library leading to different rooms in the house." Edmund explained.

"Oh, I see!" Susan said, as she started pulling books off the shelf.

"Here!" Edmund called, pulling a book halfway off the shelf. The bookcase opened to reveal an opening.

Susan grabbed a torch and spool of thread. "So we don't get lost." She explained to Edmund when he looked at her questioningly.

Peter opened his eyes to see Lucy being strangled by a silken scarf. He tried to move, but found he couldn't. He could only watch helplessly as the scarf squeezed tighter around his sister's throat.

Mrs. Mcormack stood there laughing.

**A/N : Ah the dreaded cliff hanger what will happen ?**


	11. Chapter 11 : Under a spell

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**AN : The pendant is now a amulet which makes more sense.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing! nothing! ('cept the Mcormacks)**

Susan tied the end of the rope she had brought around the handle of the door.

"Do you have the torch?" She asked Edmund. He nodded and flipped it on.

"Right so uh, which way left or right?" She looked at him.

Right, I suppose." Edmund said. "You know it was a bit strange that the door didn't open."

"I thought so too." Susan commented. "I hope they're okay. I hate to admit this but Lucy actually scared me."

"I think she scared Peter too. I know she scared me! It was eerie " Edmund agreed.

"Do you really think this goes through the house?" Susan wondered aloud.

"I don't know, but we'll soon find out." Edmund replied.

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"Why are you doing this?" Peter gasped in pain as he smashed against the wall. He staggeredhis feet, determined to get to Lucy. The scarf was still choking her, but it had loosened a bit.

"Because the house should have been mine!" Mrs. Mcormack screeched. "I thought after all those deaths, I so carefully planned over the year, no one would want to live in a house that was supposedly "cursed"! But no - First your great-uncle and then you guys showed up. Then my scare tactics didn't phase you."

"What scare tactics? The ghosts?" Peter demanded, in an effort to keep her talking as he inched his way towards Lucy.

"Don't be stupid! They were trying to warn you to get out! You should have listened to them!" Mrs. Mcormack said.

"How's your sister looking these days?" She asked in a taunting voice. "It was so easy just to grab that pretty face of hers and smash it into the mirror. Then they had to go find the locket and our power weakened a bit, but it didn't make a bit of difference. At least not until that little brat found the amulet!"

"It's just a amulet. What's so special about an amulet?" Peter asked, untying the scarf from around Lucy's neck.

"ALL OUR POWER LAY IN THAT AMULET!" Mrs. Mcormack screamed, her face coloring with rage. Then she smiled coldly. "Let the little girl leave." She said in a voice so cold it chilled Peter. He hesitated before nodding at Lucy. She looked at him, then ran out.

Peter looked at Mrs. Mcormack and to his surprise, he could see wrinkled skin peeking beneath her youthful skin.

"Without that amulet. I'm going to die." She growled.

"You killed people! I don't feel sorry for you. I can't!" Peter shook his head backing away.

"Stupid boy! I don't want your pity. I need your blood! Unless of course, I call the little girl back in here and I can kill her instead." Mrs. Mcormack hissed, drawing out a silver jagged dagger. "Or your other siblings. It doesn't matter really. In fact the younger the better, I think."

"NO! Leave them alone! Don't you dare touch them!" Peter commanded.

"Then come to me." Mrs. Mcormack crooned in a soothing, hypnotic voice, staring straight at Peter.

She beckoned him forward. He couldn't stop himself. He walked toward her as if in a dream or a trance.

Mrs. Mcormack tugged him closer. "I deserve this house, don't I? My husband and I deserve this house." She stroked his cheek.

"Yes," he replied flatly, without emotion.

_XXXXXXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXXXXXXXXXXXxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxXXXX_

"Where exactly are we?" Susan asked, looking around the room that they had ended up in.

"I don't know. Maybe a room we haven't seen before. I mean there are more than a hundred rooms in this house." Edmund clicked off the electric torch.

"Well, one of these doors has to be the ballroom! Come on!" Susan whispered.

It didn't take them long to realize something was not right.

"I think we went too far" Edmund said, looking at Susan.

"We should-" Susan started to say something, but was cut off by the sound of a door opening. Panicking, she grabbed Edmund's hand and pulled him into a bedroom where they dove under a bed.

They watched as Mr. Mcormack came in. He picked up a jar and dipped his finger in it, spreading it on his face and hands. Putting the jar down, he left the room without looking back.

Susan kept a hand on Edmund's arm to keep him from getting up. When she felt it was safe, she nodded and they scrambled from beneath the bed.

Edmund picked up the jar and looked at it. There was nothing impressive about it. It was a small glass jar with a clear blue liquid.

"What do you think this is?" Edmund asked.

"It's not moisturizer, I can tell you that much!" Susan stated. "There are no mirrors around anywhere. Why do you think that is?"

"I don't know. Does it matter? We have to get out of here!" Edmund hissed.

Mrs. Mcormack was playing with Peter's mind .She might not have had her amulet, but she still had enough powers to make one person fall under her command. She led him to the balcony.

"Go ahead. Jump." She whispered soothingly.

As if in a trance Peter placed both hands on the railing and climbed up, teetering dangerously.

Mrs. Mcormack smiled. It would be so easy just to make him jump.

**A/N: Next Lucy tries to get back in the ballroom and Susan and Edmund come up with a plan.**


	12. Chapter 12: Mystery solved

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"We should get back," Susan said, tugging Edmund toward the door . "Mr. Mcormack might come back."

"What about that stuff we found?" Edmund asked.

"Leave it! Come on! We have to leave now." Susan urged. Suddenly they heard the front door open and close.

Susan gasped and pulled Edmund through the kitchen. They found the back door chained and nailed shut.

"Now what?" Edmund whispered.

"Quick, this way!" Susan pulled open a door that lead down to the basement.

"What if he comes down this way?" Edmund whispered.

"Don't!" Susan moaned, not wanting to think about that possibility. "Don't even say such a thing." She flipped on the torch and looked around the basement and nearly screamed. It was not a normal basement. It was riddled with skeletons.

"No wonder they couldn't find any bodies." Edmund said quietly.

"Why would they take the bodies?" Susan asked.

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_Jump one step and all your troubles will be over. Just one step and you'll be free. Just jump._ Mrs. Mcormack "urged" Peter. She was finding him hard to kill. He held on with a stubborn will.

"What do you desire?" She whispered in his ear. " Jump and it'll be yours."

"I'll die," Peter said, flatly gazing at the rock and ocean below him, ready to swallow him up.

"Small price one must pay to get what they desire. You'll see your father again. Don't you desire that?" Mrs. Mcormack asked.

"More than anything." Peter admitted.

_Then jump and you'll see him_

Peter's hand trembled from where it gripped the railing. It sounded so tempting. Was this how Edmund felt when the White Witch tempted him? The thought of Edmund made him think of Lucy, Susan and Mum. He couldn't do that to them. He wasn't that selfish and cowardly.

"NO!" he shouted, breaking the trance that Mrs. Mcormack had him under. He turned to face her.

"I'm not stupid! You plan to kill all of us! Why?" Peter asked.

"None of your business!" Mrs. Mcormack snapped, pulling out a knife. "If you had just jumped like I wanted you to, I wouldn't have to kill you."

"Mirrors!" Edmund cried, once they were back in the mansion.

"What?" Susan asked looking at him.

Before Edmund could explain himself, Lucy came running in. Susan went toward her.

"Wait!" Edmund cried, pulling her back." She might be possessed still"

"Ask her a question only the real Lucy would know." Susan whispered in his ear.

"Lu. How do you spell serendipity?" Edmund asked.

"You don't even know how to spell serendipity." Lucy rolled her eyes.

"Yeah, that's Lucy all right." Edmund said dryly. "Where's Peter?"

"In trouble" Lucy cried. "Mrs. Mcormack has him on the balcony."

"Oh no." Susan moaned, "If our theory's right then she'll make him jump and commit suicide!"

"Unless she already has!" Edmund cried.

"She might not. What were you saying about mirrors?" Susan asked.

"I think we can use a mirror against them! There must be a reason why their house doesn't have any mirrors - not even a small mirror - and I just remembered that whenever Mrs. Mcormack showed us the rooms she never went inside." Edmund said

"There were mirrors in the rooms!" Lucy cried "over the dressers"

"What if you're wrong?" Susan asked, doubtfully.

"Let's just hope I'm not!" Edmund said.

"You'll go to jail for murder." Peter warned, eyeing the knife with trepidation.

"On the contrary. They'll just think you fell over the side of the cliff and your body got washed away by the sea." Mrs. Mcormack sneered.

"You killed them!" Peter said, "Maybe not personally, but you had a hand in their death! Uou and your husband! You knew what their weaknesses were and you played on that. You drove them all mad until they were forced to kill, then kill themselves. That's why she apologized." The last part was said more to himself. "She was in a trance. They all were and that nursery fire was no accident either, was it? You caused it. The only death you didn't cause was James and Cordelia's their death was natural. That's why the locket broke half your curse. You can't love anyone because you gave away the only part of you that can love. Just so you could live forever."

"Shut up! We deserve this house. We were faithful servants for more than fifty years ahd he promised us this house .So when we were given an opportunity to get back what was ours in exchange for our mortal self, we jumped at the chance!"

"Oh god, they're zombies!" Edmund asked coming up behind Mrs. Mcormack.

"What are you guys doing here?" Peter groaned

"Couldn't let you have all the fun." Susan said, as she and Lucy appeared next to Edmund they were all holding something behind their back. Lucy ran over and hugged Peter, slipping something into his hand.

"How sweet." Mrs. Mcormack snapped sarcastically. "A touching family reunion. Well it'll save me time trying to find you all to kill you! Ever since the amulet was broken, my powers have been dwindling. But luckily I have enough to kill you all here."

"Pity." Susan said, shaking her head

"What are you talking about, girl?" Mrs. Mcormack demanded.

"Well, it's just that for someone who's been alive for more than a hundred years you look good, but you've never seen yourself in a mirror have you?" Susan asked pulling out a mirror.

"You do look pretty." Lucy chimed in, holding up a mirror.

"NO!! What are you doing!" Mrs. Mcormack screeched as her face started changing from a young youthful face to a old lady with her flesh started falling off .She whirled around but was met on all four sides by a mirror.

She shrieked and tried to run back into the house, but Edmund had it blocked. Her flesh continued falling off until she was only a skeleton that crumbled into dust that was blown away in the wind.

"Ugh! That was the most disgusting thing, I've ever seen." Susan shuddered as Peter put an arm around her.

"What about Mr. Mcormack! He's still alive!" Peter asked

"Actually he's not. He met the same fate as his wife, though we're about twenty mirrors short." Edmund shrugged.

"Look the sun!" Lucy pointed toward the horizon. Sure enough, for the first time since they moved into the house over a month ago, the house wasn't shrouded in fog.


End file.
